Harvest Time!

We just got back from a trip to Michigan to see David's family. All of the Wittenbach siblings were there, which is unusual, so we had a great time being together. Here's a link to the pictures:

share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=0AYtWzFi0ZNmLpo

Birthday Goodness

Just wanted to share a few pictures from Noel's birthday party. He had a really good time. Liked to make a mess with the cake, but didn't care too much about eating it. Never quite understood the idea of opening presents, but loved everything he got. He got a wagon, which he is especially pumped about.

First of many

So Noel not only had his first birthday yesterday, but had his first big accident. He was walking around outside and fell on the pavement. Immediately he had a huge purple goose egg. He cried for a while, but was very brave. In fact, by the time David got the camera to take a picture, he smiled for him! He never ceases to amaze me. The accident itself was much harder on the parents. We finally put a bandaid over it, not necessarily to heal anything, but so we wouldn't have to look at it and be reminded that our little man had a big hurt. Other than that, he had a fun day. We are so blessed to have Noel, and this year has been amazing. Let the adventure of the second year begin (gulp!)

What a difference a year makes!

October 4, 2006

October 4, 2007


Happy Birthday, Noel!!

Success!

Well, our camping trip was a huge success! Everyone, including Noel, had a great time. Some of our favorite parts included:
*hanging out with friends
*s'mores
*going on bike rides
*Saturday afternoon hike
*time with our small group, including a pitch-in breakfast that was fabulous
*Playing Phase 5 (we get bored easily)by the campfire

Some of Noel's favorite parts included
*other kids
*dirt
*rocks
*grass
*food
*dogs
*hanging out with mom and dad
What more could a kid ask for?

Below is a link to all the pictures from camping plus some others from September. Enjoy!!

http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=0AYtWzFi0ZNmLnQ

Get ready to camp!

So this weekend Noel is embarking on his first real camping trip. We are going with the Pagingtons, as well as 160+ people from our church, to camp at Brown County. I'm a little nervous how Noel is going to do in the tent, but whatever the outcome, it will make a good story, right?

The walking is getting better and faster every day. It's hilarious! He plays with his best friend, Tee, all day (even though Tee could do without him sometimes).

We will be sure to share any good camping stories when we return.

Happy 11 months, Noel!

Noel is officially a (struggling) walker. This past week he has gone from one or two steps to walking about 6-7 feet at a time. It is so crazy watching him! Now he is getting into even more stuff (like toilet paper!).


We went to Ohio over Labor Day weekend to see the Dean family. Noel had fun playing with his cousins and Aunt and Uncle. He tried to walk everywhere he went. He especially liked playing outside with Becca

And playing on the cornhole board that Jacob made. He was born to compete!!

We are looking forward to celebrating Noel's one year birthday. Does anybody have any good party ideas??

Good Reads

If you look at the right hand column on the blog, you will find a list of what I am reading and books I have recently read or reviewed. My friend Jodi Flowers sent me a link to this amazing website where I can see what other people are reading. I love books and reading, and I am really excited about getting some good book recommendations, because right now I can't seem to find anything I like. So please, comment and let me know of any books that you think I should (or shouldn't) read!

10 states in 10 months

In case you didn't know, Noel is quite the traveler. In his 10 months of life, he has been to 10 states. Although it was not his first time, this weekend we went on an excursion to Illinois to see my friend Jill Dicken.

We had a really good time hanging out, and Noel thought Jill was funny (take that, Joel Craig! :) ). David was super dad and watched Noel so Jill and I could spend some time together and go to the movies. We are loving watching Noel grow and change. His new things are playing peek-a-boo and being chased around the house. It's quite the show.

Noel's First Tractor Ride and Tee's First Shave

It was a big week last week for the Wittenbachs. Noel got to ride on a tractor for the first time (actually, I had never been on a tractor before either, but that wasn't quite as exciting for everyone else). He loved it so much he cried when we were done. Also, Noel went to the beach for the first time, but we forgot to take any pictures.






The other first was for our Miss Tee Off. She got a special present from Grandma (David's mom): a summer cut! She is now shaven, even her ears. We think she kind of looks like a goat, but it's cute! Be sure to read about our trip to the fair below!

Good Times

You know you're at the Howard County Fair when. . .
*Shirts are an optional item of apparel
*The hottest thing there is the cheese
*Ladies are wearing jean shorts so short the pockets are hanging out the bottom
*People put on their "good clothes" to come to the fair
*The Carnies look better than some of the parents putting their kids on the tilt-a-whirl

Yes, folks, it's that time of year. Tonight David, Noel, and I ventured out to the Howard County Fair. As you can tell by the pictures, we were all entertained in different ways, but we all had a good time.

Always changing

Well, Noel is officially mobile! He started crawling a few weeks ago, and it took him about 10 days to get tired of that, so now he is pulling up on anything he can. Every time we turn around he is standing up, holding onto something. It keeps us busy, but he is so entertaining. He loves to make people laugh. When we are out, he will make noise until strangers look at him, then he'll tilt his head and smile at them. Quite the charmer. Anyway, here are some recent pictures.

Two down, ten to go

We got to see our niece, Lauren, graduate this past week. She is our 2nd niece/nephew to graduate. Now we have 10 more left! We had a great time with everyone. I'm going to add this link to the shutterfly album, if you're interested. I think it will work, but I'm new to Shutterfly, so please forgive the mistakes.

http://share.shutterfly.com/action/pictures;jsessionid=8F7EDCF0294A6584F82B7BEC5439A5E3?a=67b0de21b32e0cb365c4&sid=0AYtWzFi0ZNmLjA

Also, here are a few pictures from our stop in Gatlinburg on the way down. Noel got to go on his first hike. We went to Clingman's Dome and Grotto Falls. Beautiful weather and wonderful time!

7 months!

Noel is now 7 months old! He is doing really well. We laugh about him every day because he is getting such a personality. This is a picture of Noel with Brian and Ashley Craw, our friends who moved to Lexington, KY a few months ago. We took Noel on his first trip to the Bluegrass state.

We're so glad it's getting warmer now, because Noel LOVES being outside! We go on walks, and he watches us work on the yard, not to mention watching Tee run everywhere. I can't wait to see him in the pool!

Easter 2007

Here are some pictures from our Easter celebration in Findlay with the Wittenbach clan. Of course there was the annual egg hunt, although the mayhem was a little subdued because of the cold weather. It was really nice to see everyone and be with family.

Almost 6 months old!

These are some newer pictures of Noel. The biggest change right now is that he is eating baby food. He is loving it! We're not sure what he loves more, though, eating carrots, or chewing on the socks that he pulls off his feet. He has also discovered Tee-dog, and loves getting kisses (aka licks) from her.

If I were going to rob a store. . .

I promise you, I did not make this up. On yesterday's front page of the Kokomo Tribune was an article titled, "Dollar theater robbery foiled". The article goes on to describe the incident. I'd like to share some of my favorite tidbits:
*"A robbery attempt at a local theater was thwarted Monday evening after two employees and a customer tackled the alleged perpetrator and held him down until police arrived." First of all, if you're going to rob a store, why in the WORLD would you pick the dollar theater? Does he realize that people pay A DOLLAR to watch a movie? And this is a Monday night. Even if the place is busy he might walk out with 50 bucks.
*“I walked into the kitchen area and there was this guy standing there,” Van-Haecke recalled. “I asked what he was doing and said he cleaning for us. [love the grammar]I said ‘you’re trying to rob me.’”Van-Haecke said the man then threw some articles he had in his hand in the trash can and tried to flee. Nothing like apprehending a criminal by saying, "You're trying to rob me."
*“He was struggling a lot,” Van-Haecke said. “He definitely didn’t want to be there when the cops showed up.” No, really? I thought most thieves were excited to see the cops.
*Murphy was not armed with a weapon and no injuries were reported. After all that, he didn't even have a weapon.

I love the newspaper.

Snow Fun!

Well, we finally got some snow this winter, so we took some pictures. The drift on top of the doghouse was bigger than Noel! Anyway, it was beautiful, and we will be sad to see it melt away. maybe next year Noel can really get to play in it.

4 months old!

Just wanted to add some new pictures of Noel. He's doing so well. He's still just a little peanut--12 pounds, but what he lacks in weight he makes up for in his cheeks. He has some of the best expressions. He likes to read books with his dad, as you can see above. Although you can't tell from these pictures, he smiles a lot and is laughing more and more.

Happy New Year!

New pictures of Noel. He had a great Christmas--got to see everyone from both sides of the family and got plenty of lovin. His new thing is making noise. He babbles all day--it's hilarious.